Pinelopi Akritidou is an oil painter living in Thessaloniki, Greece. Raised in a family of doctors and scientists, Akritidou has forged a unique aesthetic that blends abstraction, figuration, and medical imagery. She creates fantasy landscapes populated by myriad organisms of varying shapes–spherical, oval, polygonal, isodiametric, or tubular–as if observed under a microscope. These unfamiliar habitats act as contrasts and containers for pressing issues explored by the artist, which are circumscribed inside bubbles floating in the atmosphere. The diverging color temperatures, luminosities, and stylistic executions add dramatic tension to the conversing planes, luring the beholder into a dense net of associations. In Threat, for instance, a carmine heart organ buoys against a backdrop of green macroscopic HIV cells, symbolizing the still prevalent taboos faced by the LGBTQ+ community and their sexuality. Other topics addressed by the artist are the war in Ukraine, environmental destruction, and societal isolation in the digital age. There is always a clear intent behind Akridiou’s narratives, yet she prefers the enigma to remain partly unsolved, leaving room for the viewer to form their own interpretations.
